


Zara, the Wise Woman and the Prince

by LaDonnaErrante



Series: How Zara came to Court [1]
Category: Fairy Tales and Related Fandoms, Jewish Legend & Lore
Genre: Collection: Purimgifts Day 2, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-21
Updated: 2013-02-21
Packaged: 2017-12-03 03:49:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 904
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/693773
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LaDonnaErrante/pseuds/LaDonnaErrante
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zara sets out to seek her fortune and finds a unique set of challenges.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Zara, the Wise Woman and the Prince

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Zdenka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zdenka/gifts).



> As I explored some of the kick-ass women of Jewish Lore for this fest, I became a bit obsessed with Serakh bat Asher, who is mentioned in Torah but whose character is developed in midrash and in jewish folklore from around the world but particularly in Persia. For those who may be less familiar with her, she is the immortal granddaughter of Jacob the Patriarch and is often the personification of Jewish history and memory.
> 
> This is part 1 of an original fairy tale based loosely on Persian Jewish Folklore

Once upon time, deep in the heart of a kingdom, which no longer exists, there was a tiny village. In the village there lived a widower who had only one daughter to take care of him. He had raised the girl since her mother had died. The man and his daughter Zara were very poor; he didn’t own any land to speak of and spent his life working the fields that belonged to the Prince. Poor though he was, he was very learned and he taught his daughter all he knew. He knew that when he died she would be left with nothing, that her inheritance would be wisdom and wit.  
  
When that the old man died, his daughter tied up what little food she had and her few possessions -- a ring that belonged to her mother and a change of clothes -- and she set out to find a place for herself in the world. Zara was walking on the road to the capitol of their little state when something in the bushes caught her eye. It was a doe with the most beautiful and entrancing silver eyes she had ever seen. As she stepped closer, the deer darted away. Being of a curious nature and deciding that a short detour could do her no harm, she decided to follow. She ran after the deer through a thicket that lead to a cave in the woods.  
  
When Zara arrived at the mouth of the cave, she saw an old woman, with long gray hair, sitting on the rock, combing it out and singing a sad, haunting tune in a language Zara had never heard. The young woman watched, mesmerized, until the crone lifted her head and smiled.   
  
“Hello, my child. You were very wise to follow me here.”  
  
“I’m nobody’s child,” Zara huffed.  
  
She shrugged. “Maybe.”  
  
“Who are you?”  
  
“I have many names. My father called me Serakh, to Samuel I was simply the wise woman. I come and go. Call me what you will.”  
  
The young woman was awed; could this be Serakh bat Asher? The same one as in all the stories she’d been told as a child?  
  
“Grandma Serakh, what brings you here, now?”  
  
The wise woman laughed, and though her voice was cracked and old, her laugh reminded Zara of a spring running over rocks. “We have work to do, my dear. Let me be clear, I don’t know what stories they are telling of me these days, but just as you are no one’s child anymore, I am no one’s grandmother. Where are you going and to what ends?”  
  
“I am on my way to the capitol,” she replied, “My father has passed, may he rest in peace, and I must find work.”   
  
Serakh nodded, pondered and mumbled something quietly before getting up, with only a wave of her hand to indicate that the girl should follow her.  
  
Once inside the cave, Zara saw an immense light springing from the back, but Serakh stopped her before she could see what it held.  
  
“The path into Eden is not for you yet, young friend, there is work to be done. There are a few things I can give you to help you on your journey, my child, but you have much to accomplish.”   
  
Zara looked puzzled, but the old woman just nudged her with an expression of impatience. “You have heard that the Prince is ill? And surely you know what heavy taxes are imposed upon our people while he lies in his bed? And that we may go to war any day now?”   
  
Zara nodded.  
  
“He is under the spell of a sorcerer in his own court, one of his trusted advisors. You must end this spell.”   
  
“How am I supposed to do that?”  
  
“You carry a ring with you, yes?”   
  
The girl nodded. “It belonged to my mother.”  
  
“It is no ordinary ring. If you turn it three times, you will be able to understand the language of the birds. They know many secrets, eavesdropping may be useful to you.”  
  
“I will give you two more things for your journey, but you must promise to use them wisely and only as I instruct you.”  
  
“I promise,” the young woman answered, eager to know what the other gifts were.   
  
“The first is a harp; whenever it is played the singer who accompanies it reveals the truth. I used it to comfort Jacob Our Father. You must be careful with it, for the truth told in the wrong moment or spoken to the wrong person is a dangerous thing.”   
  
Zara, picked up the harp with care and tucked it into her bundle.   
  
Finally, Serakh produced a sword from the folds of her robes. “My last gift to you is the sword that slew Sheba ben Bichri. It is a weapon of precision; you should only use it to take a life if it will save many.”  
  
Zara thanked the old woman and made her way back to the main road and journeyed on. While she walked, she pondered her dilemma. How was she to gain entry to the palace? And once there would she be able to cure the Prince? Serakh didn’t actually tell her how to make him well or how she would know which vizier was the sorcerer? Would she have to kill him?

 

 

 

Violin d'Ingres

Man Ray

Source: http://www.getty.edu/art/gettyguide/artObjectDetails?artobj=61240

 

 

 

 


End file.
